The University of Winnipeg is proud to host the second annual Blaikie Knowles Woodsworth Lecture on Tuesday, October 29 at 6:00 p.m. in Convocation Hall.
Named in honour of Bill Blaikie, who was a UWinnipeg alumnus, United Church Minister, and MP and MLA for the New Democratic Party, this lecture series will emphasize the importance of faith, spirituality, and compassion as underpinnings of social democracy. The lecture is part of the Douglas Coldwell Layton Foundation for Social Democracy Lecture Series, which takes place in major universities across Canada to inspire a new generation of community leaders featuring dynamic experts in Canadian social democratic thought and organizing.
This year’s lecture is titled Culture, Spirituality and Compassion: Centering Indigenous Wisdom in Colonial Spaces and will feature speakers Niigaanwewidam Sinclair, katherena vermette, and Sheila North, moderated by Dr. Chantal Fiola.
Niigaanwewidam Sinclair
Niigaanwewidam James Sinclair is Anishinaabe (St. Peter’s/Little Peguis) and an Assistant Professor at the University of Manitoba. He is a regular commentator on Indigenous issues on CTV, CBC, and APTN, and his written work can be found in the pages of The Exile Edition of Native Canadian Fiction and Drama, newspapers like The Guardian, and online with CBC Books: Canada Writes. Niigaan is the co-editor of the award-winning Manitowapow: Aboriginal Writings from the Land of Water (Highwater Press, 2011) and Centering Anishinaabeg Studies: Understanding the World Through Stories (Michigan State University Press, 2013), and is the Editorial Director of The Debwe Series with Portage and Main Press. He obtained his BA in Education at UWinnipeg, before completing an MA in Native- and African-American literatures at the University of Oklahoma, and a PhD in First Nations and American Literatures from the University of British Columbia. His latest book is Wînipêk: Visions of Canada from an Indigenous Centre (Penguin Random House Canada).
katherena vermette
katherena vermette (she/her/hers) is a Michif (Red River Métis) writer from Treaty 1 territory, the heart of the Métis Nation in Winnipeg. Born in Winnipeg, her Michif roots on her paternal side run deep in St. Boniface, St. Norbert and beyond. Her maternal side is Mennonite from the Altona and Rosenfeld area (Treaty 1).
In 2013, her first book, North End Love Songs (Muses’ Company) won the Governor General’s Literary Award for Poetry. Since then, her work has garnered awards and critical accolades across genres. Her novels The Break (House of Anansi) and The Strangers and The Circle (Hamish Hamilton) were all national best sellers and won multiple literary awards.
Her fourth novel, real ones (Hamish Hamilton) was released in fall 2024.
Vermette’s work for children and young adults includes the picture book, The Girl and The Wolf (Theytus) and graphic novel series, A Girl Called Echo (Highwater).
She holds a Master of Fine Arts from the University of British Columbia, and an honourary Doctor of Letters from the University of Manitoba.
She lives with her kids – fur and human – in a cranky old house within skipping distance of the temperamental Red River.
Sheila North
A member of Bunibonibee Cree Nation (also known as Oxford House), Sheila North is the former Grand Chief of Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak (MKO) 2015 to 2018. Before that, she achieved her lifelong goal of becoming a journalist/storyteller and worked in the media industry for 15 years. She is recognized for her efforts building bridges between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities during her work with media and during her time as the MKO Grand Chief.
Most recently, Sheila was the Director, Missing Children, Residential Schools, and Engagements for the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) program in Canada on Engagement Strategy for Missing Children from former Residential School sites. Prior to starting with ICMP, she was an anchor and journalist at CBC Manitoba. Formerly, she was the Director of Strategic Partnerships at Legacy Bowes and Political Commentator for CTV Network.
Before Sheila became the Grand Chief of MKO, she worked as a journalist for CBC for seven years (2005 to 2012). She has also been an entrepreneur, a Cree translator, an economic development officer, a radio personality, a Chief Communication Officer at the Assembly for Manitoba Chiefs, and a correspondent with CTV News until being elected as MKO Grand Chief in September 2015.
One of Sheila’s passions is working with Indigenous and non- Indigenous communities to raise awareness about the national tragedy of missing and murdered Indigenous women (MMIW), and is the original creator of the commonly used hashtag, #MMIW. She continues to work closely with families, friends and Indigenous and non- Indigenous leaders to address the issue of violence against Indigenous women that has resulted in the current crisis. She has succeeded in engaging people in responding to the critical issue of MMIW through a variety of means, including her most recent project—a documentary she co-produced with Leonard Yakir titled 1200+ that highlights some of the systemic issues that place Indigenous women at greater risk for violence and sexual exploitation. With assistance from the Canadian Women’s Foundation, she also commissioned a curriculum on MMIW that pairs with the film.
Doors will open at 5:30 p.m. and the lecture will begin at 6:00 p.m., followed by a reception in Leatherdale Hall at 7:30 p.m.
